


Sincerity is Scary

by iwabrainrot777



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, College, Crushes, F/M, Fluff, I'm Bad At Summaries, Pining, Reader-Insert, Romance, Self-Indulgent, im going to create the most self indulgent iwa brain rot, iwaizumi best boy, no thoughts in brain only longing for iwa
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:06:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28234389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwabrainrot777/pseuds/iwabrainrot777
Summary: Moving to California was something exciting for Hajime -- the land of sunshine, in’n’out, and new opportunities. When a chance encounter with a girl blossoms into friendship, can he turn it into something more? Do either of them want something more?Being honest with your feelings is hard.
Relationships: Iwaizumi Hajime/Reader, Iwaizumi Hajime/You
Kudos: 18





	1. The Encounter

When Iwaizumi Hajime moved to California for college, he knew it’d be different from Japan.

He knew that Irvine would be a great opportunity for him, where he’d be able to learn about becoming an athletic trainer, along with absorbing a new culture. He was excited to try American food, watch movies, and experience college. He’d been working on his English for a couple years beforehand, hoping his vocabulary and comprehension were fine tuned enough to have full conversations. He was excited about all the people he’d be able to meet, and the adventures and connections that come along with new friends. 

What he wasn’t expecting was her.

Hajime first noticed Y/N in his intro chemistry lab, his freshman fall quarter. With 20 or so students, it was a class that was small enough to recognize the same faces every week, but everyone worked to finish as fast as possible so no one really socialized. Hajime thought she was cute, and liked how meticulously she seemed to work. The face she made when she was concentrating hard was especially adorable. She was always one of the first to finish the lab and leave, and Hajme wanted to be able to keep up with her. 

Midway through the quarter, Y/N was walking around in flip flops, asking if anyone had extra socks. Apparently she had forgotten to bring a pair to wear with her shoes, both of which were necessary for class every week. Their TA was notorious for kicking students out and not allowing them to make up the lab at a later time if they were missing any required lab materials, even if it was just socks. 

Hajime reached into his bag to grab a black sock ball and handed it to her. She looked at the socks with wonder in her eyes, a treasure during this desperate moment. He eyed her curiously, feeling oddly jealous of his socks.

“Wow wait, you actually have a pair? Are you sure?” Y/N looked up at him and Hajime glanced at the ceiling sheepishly. 

“Yeah it’s not a big deal, I always have an extra pair for volleyball practice. They’re clean by the way,” he added quickly. He made eye contact before asking, “The real question is how did you remember to bring your shoes but not socks?” He smiled as he teased lightly.

Y/N was taken aback for a moment, seeing Hajime’s face soften with a smile. He went from intimidating to friendly and inviting in an instant. The corners of her lips perked up, but she had a weary expression on her face. “Let’s just say it’s been a rough afternoon. But thanks, you’re a lifesaver! The TA has such a stick in his butt about this stuff.”

“No problem,” he said, and turned back to his notes. Y/N sauntered back to her seat and slipped on the socks, and then her vans. The socks were huge on her, so the heel of the sock stuck out the back of her ankles, reminding him of fish fins. Hajime does his best to suppress his smile when he notices. 

As the lab progressed, his mind was barely registering what was going on, focussed more on a way to start a conversation with Y/N after class. Unfortunately, as always Y/N finished the lab quickly and was gone before Hajime could even say goodbye. 

The following week, she returned his socks, cleaned, with a thank you, and that was that. Hajime was left once again thinking of a way to start a meaningful conversation. 

However, time flew by too quickly, and Hajime had too many things going on to consider wooing the girl from chemistry. Playing volleyball, game nights with his floormates, trying to not fail classes. In the blink of an eye his first quarter of college was coming to an end. 

On the last day of class, he considered going up to her to ask for her number, but his brain was muddled with how he would bridge that conversation. “Hey, you borrowed my socks, would you want to grab coffee sometime?” 

Iwaizumi hesitated too long, and before he worked up the courage to talk to her, class had ended and she’d vanished. Iwaizumi can only hope he’d have another class with her, and maybe see her around. He couldn’t work up the courage to slide into her DMs. 

As the next couple years of college passed, he occasionally saw her in a few of his lectures. He figured she must have also been studying sports medicine, seeing as how she was still in his classes, even throughout junior year and now into his senior year. As classes became more specialized, the group of students got smaller, and he wondered if she remembered that interaction from freshman year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi this is my first fic and something I've been working on as a side project for the last few months. ever since I finished the manga, Iwaizumi Hajime has been living in my mind rent free so this is my very self-indulgent dream life with Iwa in college. thanks for reading!


	2. She's American

Fall quarter senior year, and Y/N is unfortunate enough to pick the muscular anatomy lab with the worst TA. The quizzes each week don’t make sense, and the textbook is of no help. It’s barely 3 weeks into the quarter and everyone in their section is doing poorly. Their lab has the lowest average overall, and Y/N isn’t used to struggling so soon in a class. 

It’s so bad, Y/N is desperate enough to join a study group with a bunch of strangers. 

Well, acquaintances. Most are familiar faces considering the sports medicine major is small, but she’s never spoken to any of them outside of class before. She internally curses her bad luck at picking a section without her friends.

But she needs to pass the class, so here she is, at the library on a Thursday night.

Y/N rests her elbows on the table, and leans into her hand with a sigh. The organizer of the study group, Greg, is making everyone introduce themselves. And give a fun fact. Just when I thought this couldn’t get any worse, Y/N thinks to herself. 

Slowly, everyone around the room says their name and a random fact about themself, until it reaches the guy on her left. He has his arms crossed as he says, “Hi, I’m Hajime Iwaizumi. I’m from Japan.” He has a bored look on his face, and Y/N could tell this must be a last resort for him as well. 

As Y/N glances at him, she notices that even in his simple black t-shirt and Adidas soccer sweats, he looks good. He has a solid build, with his arms looking snug in his t-shirt. While his face looked bored, it didn’t take away from his handsomeness, with his strong jaw and piercing eyes. She noted that his resting bitch face was strong, and she wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of his deadpan stare. 

“Y/N L/N,” Y/N says with a sigh. “I hate ice breakers.” 

Hajime cracks a dry chuckle, “Don’t we all…” 

Greg blathers on about different study methods, and how he plans on having someone from the class at the library at all times, so there will always be a space to study with peers. Though it seems extreme, Y/N appreciates the efforts being made to keep their class afloat. 

Once Greg finishes his speech, everyone turns to their laptops and notebooks to start studying. 

Y/N fidgets in her seat for a moment. If she wanted to sit and study on her laptop, she could have done that at home. She glances to her left and decides to ask Hajime to study together. He smiled when she introduced herself, that meant this wouldn’t be weird, right? Though she’s nervous she might be bothering him since he’s already opened his laptop, she knows she’d study better going over notes with someone else.

“Hey Hajime, wanna go over all the leg muscles and joints together?” she asks him. 

He looks up from his laptop with a blank look on his face, “Sure.” 

Y/N quietly tests Hajime first, then he does the same for her. He notices she’s able to recall more than him, so he asks how she’s able to remember it all.

“I just have a ton of mnemonics in my brain.”

“Are any of them helpful?” 

“Well, yes. They’re not exactly mnemonics but it helps me remember. Just don’t laugh too hard and I’ll explain it to you.” 

Hajime is expressionless as Y/N starts explaining how the cruciate joint located in the knee sounds like “crucio,” a spell from Harry Potter, which in theory would make someone fall on their knees. 

“I know it’s kinda lame but because it’s ridiculous I remember it,” Y/N explains with a shrug. 

“Aren’t there other cruciate joints in the body?” Hajime asks, trying not to smile. “Though I feel like I have to remember after hearing that.” 

“Yeah, but we’re only learning that area right now so it’s a future me problem,” Y/N states simply. 

Hajime blinks and ponders for a moment. “I guess that’s fair, one midterm at a time.” 

For the rest of the night, while their classmates are silently going over notes or examining diagrams on their laptops, Hajime and Y/N review muscle groups boisterously, creating more ridiculous mnemonics to help remember each name.

Towards the end of the night, Y/N is laughing at Hajime’s suggestion to remember the calcaneus is at the ankle by thinking of an old man named Cal with bad ankles, using a cane. 

“Studying anatomy totally reminds me of the Hannah Montana song,” she says fondly.

“What’s Hannah Montana?” Hajime asks.

Y/N looks at him with an evil glint in her eyes and pulls up the video on her laptop for him to watch. Ten seconds in, Hajime gives her a look and pulls out an earbud, “Do I have to finish this?”

“Yes, it’s educational! And a cultural experience! It’s a core part of growing up in the US, and will give you the strength to study hard tonight,” Y/N insists.

Hajime smiles and shakes his head, and finishes the brief video. When it’s done, he asks, “So this means you’re coming up with a song for all the muscles?”

“We can!” Y/N smiles widely at him. “Isn’t it way easier to remember things with a song?” 

Hajime laughs, “Yeah, you’re not wrong. I think having a dance to go with it would help, too.”

“You can plan the choreo, it’ll be great,” she teases. 

It’s midnight when they decide it’s time to head out. Y/N has taken the bus to campus that day, so Hajime offers her a ride home. 

As they walk together in the parking lot, Y/N says, “So you’ve been in America for 3 plus years and no one’s shown you Hannah Montana yet?”

“I guess it must have slipped from their minds.”

“I know we have to study but in between you’re gonna learn a lot about real American culture.” 

He smiled. “Looking forward to it. That car is mine, by the way,” Hajime says, as he points to a white sedan. Paint is chipped off a few places on the bumper, and it looks like it’s ready to give out at any moment. He passes his key to Y/N. “The door has to be unlocked from the passenger side,” he explains. 

Y/N approaches the car and hesitates with the key. She inserts it into the lock and twists it multiple times, setting the lock off, on, off and back on.

Hajime laughs. “Just twist it to the left once.” Y/N follows the directions and the doors unlocks with a click.

“I swear I’m not that technologically challenged usually,” Y/N says defensively. As she sits down she notices the duct tape covering the seats, and the manual crank to open the windows. “Just curious, how old is this car?” 

“Old enough. Still runs fine, though,” Hajime replies, as he twists the key in the ignition. It takes a second, but the car rumbles to life. Y/N feels like she can hear the engine crying out for help as the car sputters. 

“This thing sounds like it’s about to give out,” Y/N says.

“Hey, it was a great deal. And it works. Better than walking home from the library right?” Hajime says as he puts the car into reverse. Y/N can’t help but glance at his right arm flex as he places it behind the passenger seat to back out.

She composes herself quickly. “Fair enough, anything is better than the bus. Does your car have a name?”

Hajime thinks for a second. “Not really. I guess I’d call it Godzilla.” 

“This car isn’t green but I guess it is pretty scary.”

“This car is an untamable beast able to conquer any city,” Hajime says, deadpan. 

“Sure Hajime, let’s go with that,” and the two of them laugh. 

Hajime drops off Y/N at her apartment, and as they wave goodbye to one another, Hajime tries to ignore the funny feeling in his stomach. 

As Hajime drives home, he realizes he can’t really remember the last time he’s laughed so hard. He couldn’t believe his luck when the quarter started and the girl he was interested in freshman year happened to be in the same class. But today, she sat next to him, and they even studied together. He mentally pats himself on the back for keeping cool today, and hopefully leaving a good impression. 

As Hajime lays in bed that night it’s hard for him to push her out of his thoughts. He thinks back to that chemistry lab and wonders if she remembers his socks, or if he was just some insignificant event to her. He remembers how badly he wanted an excuse to talk to her then, and now suddenly he has her number, and regularly scheduled study appointments. Along with the rest of the class, but still, this was something. For the first time in his college career, Hajime can’t wait for his next library session.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello hi i am a cheeseball. thanks again for reading!


	3. Inside Your Mind

Over the next couple weeks, it was clear to Y/N that Hajime was the most fun to study with in the group. Whenever she made a sarcastic response, he’d crack a smile, if not chuckle under his breath. When she said something wrong, he wasn’t afraid to call her out. He kept them focussed and motivated, even when Y/N fussed that she was tired. Most important to her, he humored her pop culture references and watched whatever she’d show him, even if he refused to finish half of them.

Hajime was glad there was someone with a lively personality in the group. For the most part, the others worked silently at their laptops, only acknowledging each other if a particularly difficult question arose. Y/N would want to discuss topics together, go over flash cards, and quiz each other, which were better studying techniques for him. Though her energy was a bit much at times, Hajime couldn’t help being drawn to her infectious laughter and enjoyed the ridiculous videos she’d show him.

It was 11pm at the library, with Y/N, Hajime, and two others from class seated at a table together. Each was staring with great detail at diagrams on their laptop, hoping to force the information into their minds for the upcoming midterm. 

Y/N stifles a yawn, exhausted but not ready to give up. Earlier that night, she showed her favorite Vines to Hajime. Once she learned that he’d never heard of “I’m Jared, I’m 19, and I can’t fucking read,” they spent 30 minutes binging through videos. Hajime especially enjoyed pretending he didn’t understand some of them, forcing Y/N to explain the bizarre humor. 

“Isn’t Hurricane Katrina some terrible tragedy?” Hajime asks innocently, after seeing Y/N burst into laughter seeing a Vine reference the event. 

Y/N falters. “Well, yes. But… the way he says hurricane tor-til-la…” Y/N frowns. “Hajime don’t make me overthink the simple things that bring me joy.” 

The corners of Hajime’s mouth upturn, and Y/N realizes he’s joking. “You really made me feel bad for laughing at that for a second!” She says, half laughing and half serious as she playfully smacks him on the arm as he laughs along with her. 

As much as Hajime hated some of these videos, he couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculousness. His personal favorite is the croissant one.

After such a lively study interruption, Y/N and Hajime spent the next hour working in silence. 

Eventually, Y/N decides she’s ready for another break, so she gets up from her chair and stretches her arms above her head. “I’m going to grab a snack before the store closes, anyone want anything?” 

“I’ll come,” Hajime says, standing and grabbing his navy blue windbreaker. “I could use a walk.” 

The other two shake their heads, too entranced in their studies to reply verbally. 

Y/N and Hajime walk silently to the store at the bottom floor of the library, where a small cafe sells snacks and coffee. 

Suddenly, Y/N blurts out, “Do you ever feel like everyone in the study group is a snooze fest?” 

Hajime looks at her, raises an eyebrow before saying, “That’s not a compliment, right?” 

Y/N laughs. “Yeah it means they’re kind of,” she whispers the last word, “boring,” before continuing in a regular volume. “I mean, I get that we’re at the library, but isn’t the point of studying together to help each other? If they didn’t save seats at the library I don’t know if I’d bother. We sure picked the wrong section, huh? Bad TA and class. Minus us of course.” 

“Hey, at least they’re willing to work on the study sheet together. And they share pretty good resources in the group chat. You’re just upset because they aren’t as easily distracted as you. And they don’t think your memes are funny,” Hajime remarks.

“Hey, I’m just trying to make studying somewhat tolerable. It wouldn’t hurt for any of them to crack a smile every once in a while. And the memes I share are hilarious. Remember when you burst out laughing in class last week?” Y/N bumps into Hajime’s shoulder playfully.

“I think it’s safe to say I have a terrible taste in humor,” he says, a small smile on his lips. She’s really growing to like that smile. 

“Hey, even if it’s terrible it makes you laugh, right? That’s what counts,” Y/N replies with a grin.

Hajime can’t argue with that, so he resigns himself with silence. They arrive at the store and buy a bag of chips to split. On the walk back to their table, they quiz each other on the material they’ve just reviewed, and spend another hour going over notes. 

At the end of the night, Hajime gives Y/N another ride home. It’s become somewhat of a routine for the two of them, Hajime handing the keys off as Y/N unlocks his car door. They drive in silence as their minds are exhausted from studying. 

“Mind if I connect to the aux?” Y/N asks. 

“Go for it,” Hajime replies, as he grabs the auxiliary cord attached to the cassette player in his car. He hands her the cord before switching on the radio.

Y/N plugs in her phone, and starts playing her music. Soft drums and electric guitar fill the car, and Y/N hums along. 

“This is pretty nice, can you send me this later?” Hajime asks. 

“Of course. Wow, I’ve never asked, what kind of music do you like?” 

“Hmm,” Hajime hesitates. “A lot of Japanese stuff. Some rap and classic rock. To be honest, freshman year I was pretty interested in seeing what people listen to here. Most of it isn’t good.” 

Y/N turns to look at him. “I think I can change your mind about that.” 

Hajime shrugs. “Be my guest. I’d be happy to have new music to listen to.” 

They soon arrive at Y/N’s apartment, and she hurries out of the car, and turns to wave goodbye before closing the door. 

As he drives home, Hajime’s thoughts swirl with the recent developments. It’s only been a few weeks, but it’s safe to say he definitely felt attraction towards Y/N. He tries to remind himself to take it slow and get to really know her, beyond her jokes and callous nature. He barely knows anything about her, her favorite color or what she’s planning on doing after college. Though, he would like to know… But still, this is the first time he can feel himself enjoying time at the library, and there’s no need to complicate things with feelings. He tries to ignore the feeling in his chest as he slowly drifts to sleep. 

Meanwhile, as Y/N gets ready for bed, she feels grateful to have made a friend in Hajime so easily. Friendship didn’t always feel effortless for Y/N, so being able to bond so quickly with Hajime feels significant to her. Her roommates were all surprised when she said she made a friend in a class, and she was surprised at herself even. She likes how he always laughs at her jokes, even when she’s being a complete dork. It was nice having someone who was always down to study. They moved at the same pace and Y/N wonders how someone who grew up an ocean away from her has his brain wired the same way.


End file.
